Exploring autism through YA fiction with Kay Kerr

Kay Kerr is a former journalist and community newspaper editor from Brisbane. She now lives on the Sunshine Coast with her husband and daughter and works as a freelance writer. Her debut young adult novel, Please Don’t Hug Me, was inspired by her own autism-spectrum diagnosis. The interview starts at 17 minutes.This week, we started the episode with a mini book club discussion of Olive by Emma Gannon. Overall: We loved this book and recommend to anyone who enjoys contemporary fiction and likes discussing female friendships.*Note: We both received PR copies of Olive for review. In the interview, we chat about: Sibling relationships in YA fiction (and life)Working as a journalist in regional Queensland, including the closure and downsizing of dozens of small publications in mid-2020Kay’s own autism spectrum diagnosis and the experience of writing a neurodivergent characterHow Kay navigated the pitching process and sold Please Don’t Hug MeWhy Kay decided to date the book with specific Queensland high school referencesThe catharsis of writing about and reflecting on the emotion of writing about high schoolThe unexpected benefits of launching a book in a pandemicA little bit about Kay’s next novel, Social QueueBooks and other things mentionedPeta Lyre’s Rating Normal by Anna Wheatley (listen to our chat with Anna here)The Kiss Quotient by Helen HoangFollow Kay @kaykerr_. Please Don't Hug Me is available now in Australia. Follow us on Instagram @betterwordspod